Beliefs of Refuge
Because God exists and has revealed Himself to mankind, we believe that our thoughts, words, and actions must be directed by and submitted to God and his revelation, namely the Scriptures. This doctrinal statement is a summary of those truths of God revealed in the Scriptures that we believe are essential for the understanding and defense of the gospel, for instruction in godly living, for the well-being of a New Testament church, and for the work of evangelism and missions. The following is not only the core doctrinal statement of Refuge Church but is also the foundational guide for all instruction, teaching, and preaching at Refuge Church.
Statement of Faith
GOD: There is one and only one living and true God. He is of one substance, power, and will, yet eternally existing in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The triune God exists without division of nature, essence, or being (Matthew 3:16–17; 2 Corinthians 13:14; 1 John 5:7). He is the creator, sustainer, ruler, and redeemer of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections, including that pertaining to his power, knowledge, and presence.
Genesis 1:1, 1:26; John 1:1, 3, 4:24, 5:26; Matthew 28:19; Acts 7:2; Romans 1:19–20, 9:5; Ephesians 4:5–6; Colossians 2:9
GOD THE FATHER: God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of human history according to the purposes of His grace. He is all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving, and all-wise. God is Father in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. He is fatherly in His attitude toward all men.
Job 22:2–3, 34:10; Psalm 139; Isaiah 55:10–11; Daniel 3:27; Hosea 1:7, 2:21–22; Luke 10:21–22; Matthew 4:4, 23:9; John 3:16, 6:27; Acts 17:24–28, 17:31; Colossians 1:16–17; Revelation 1:4–6; Romans 1:7, 4:19–21; 1 Timothy 1:1–2, 2:5–6; 1 Peter 1:3
GOD THE SON: Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself human nature with its demands and necessities and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His substitutionary death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion (Matthew 1:18–25; Luke 1:26–38; Romans 9:5; John 1:1–18, 8:46–47, 20:28, 20:30–31; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 1:7). He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, fully God, fully man, in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission.
Matthew 20:28; Acts 1:11; Romans 5:6–8, 6:9–10; 8:34; 1 Corinthians 15:1–28; 1 Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 7:25, 9:28; 1 Peter 2:21–23; Revelation 5:12–14
GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT: The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to understand the Scriptures. He exalts Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He calls men to the Saviour, and effects regeneration. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts by which believers serve God in and through His church. He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. He empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.
John 14:16–17, 14:26, 15:26–27, John 16:9–14; Romans 8:9, 12–13; 1 Corinthians 12:13; 1 Corinthians 2:10–11, 3:16, 6:19; 2 Corinthians 3:6; Galatians 5:22–26; Ephesians 6:11–18; Titus 3:5
SCRIPTURE: The Bible is the Word of God, fully inspired and without error in the original manuscripts, written by men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and possessing supreme authority over all matters of faith and practice. The Bible, including all the books of the Old Testament and New Testament, is Holy Scripture and the inspired true Word of God. It is fully authoritative and our only absolutely trustworthy guide for life and practice, exercising supremacy over human reason (i.e., rationalism), experience (i.e., empiricism), or church tradition.
Mark 13:31; John 8:31–32, 20:31 ; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:20–21
MAN: We believe that God created all things visible and invisible for his glory through His eternal power, wisdom, and goodness. He created each species of life separately and finished His work by creating Adam from the dust and Eve from the body of Adam. We believe that the universe has its beginning and end in God. That is to say, the universe is in no sense independent of Him, and the created order’s formation and maintenance represent a continuing exertion of His creative power and ability. Regarding man, both Adam and Eve were created equally in the image of God without sin. He endued them with knowledge, righteousness, and holiness having God’s natural law of conscience written in their hearts and the power to fulfill that law. Furthermore, the sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man and woman in His own image, and therefore every person of every race possesses full dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
Genesis 1, 2:7; Ecclesiastes 7:29, 12:7; Job 26:13, 33:4; Psalm 24:1–2, 33:5–6, 104:24; Isaiah 55:10–11; Jeremiah 10:12; Matthew 10:28; John 1:1–3; Acts 17:24; Romans 1:20, 2:14–15; Ephesians 4:24, Colossians 1:16, 3:10; Hebrews 1:2, 11:3; Revelation 4:11
HUMAN NATURE: In the beginning man was innocent of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Through the temptation of Satan man transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original innocence whereby his descendants inherit a sinful nature and a world marred by sin. Therefore, as soon as they are capable of moral action, they become transgressors and are under condemnation. This corruption of nature, during this life, remains in those that are saved; and although it is, through Christ, pardoned and mortified, it is never completely overcome until our glorification.
Genesis 1:27–28, 2:16–17, 3:6–8, 3:11, 3:13, 3:23, 5:3, 6:5, 8:21; Job 14:4, 15:4; Psalm 51:5, Ecclesiastes 7:29; Jeremiah 17:9; Matthew 15:9; Acts 17:26; Romans 3:10–18, 3:23, 5:6, 5:12, 5:15–19, 7:5–8, 7:14, 7:17–18, 7:23–25, 8:7, 11:32; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22, 15:45, 15:49; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Ephesians 2:1–3; Colossians 1:21; Titus 1:15; James 1:14–15; 1 John 1:8–10; Galatians 5:17
MARRIAGE, GENDER, AND SEXUALITY: The Bible teaches that marriage is a covenant between one man and one woman, in a single exclusive union, by which their status changes from two individuals to one flesh as God joins them together. This covenant creates a new family such that their lifelong, primary, human loyalty is now to one another before anyone else. It is an earthly covenant between one man and one woman that God created and sanctioned to image the unbreakable, heavenly covenant between Christ and His church, therefore intended not to be broken by anything but death. From Genesis to Revelation, the authority of Scripture attests to the nature of biblical marriage as uniquely bound to the complementarity of man and woman. Regarding gender, God fearfully and wonderfully created each person as male or female. These two, distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God. Regarding sex, God created sex as a gift to be enjoyed within the covenant of marriage. We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged outside of this marriage covenant. We believe that the exercise of sexual expression outside the biblical definition of marriage in any manner is contradictory to God’s design for sexuality and marriage.
Genesis 1:26–27, 2:15–16; Psalm 139; Matthew 5:27–32, 19:3–12; Romans 1:26–27; 1 Corinthians 6:9–11, 6:18, 7:2–5; Ephesians 5:21–33; 1 Timothy 1:10; Hebrews 13:4
SALVATION: Salvation is a mystery. While acknowledging our finite and incomplete understanding of God’s ways, by faith we nevertheless believe that God, by His providence and eternal counsel, chose some persons to life and salvation before the foundation of the world: these whom He effectually calls to Himself. Whoever He calls, He will justify and keep by His power through faith to the day of salvation (Acts 13:48; Ephesians 1:2–4, 2:4–5, 2:8–9; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2). His choice was for His own pleasure and glory, and not with regard to, or with reference to, any foreseen works of faith or deeds in the creature as His motive. (John 17:6, 17:9, 17:19, 11:51–52; Romans 8:32–33, 11:5–6; Ephesians 1:4; Titus 3:4–7; Revelation 5:9).
Justification occurs wholly by and through Christ, because of His work on the cross; these means that no man is justified in the sight of God partly by Christ and partly by works (Romans 3:20, 3:28-30, 8:33; Galatians 5:4). Salvation is the gracious purpose of God according to which He justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. It is the glorious display of God’s sovereign goodness and grace, and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable. It rules out boasting and, instead, encourages humility. The grace of redemption is that by which God effectually calls His chosen, converting them to Himself, and quickening them from spiritual death to spiritual life. This grace is operative by and through God alone, not in cooperation with man, meaning that those who are redeemed always come to saving faith, as they are made willing to come to Christ by the drawing of God, and receive through faith their redemption and eternal salvation.
Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26; Matthew 22:14; John 6:44, 14:6; Romans 8:2, 8:30, 9:11, 11:7; Ephesians 1:4–12, 1:17–19, 2:1–5; 2 Thessalonians 2:13–14; 2 Timothy 1:9–10; Titus 3:4–5; Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 2:10–12; Philippians 2:13
We further believe that the work of Christ on the cross for sin warrants and impels a universal offering of the gospel to all persons, so that to every person it may be truly said, “God gave his only begotten Son so that whoever believes in Him might not perish but have eternal life.” Those whom God calls will hear His voice and follow Him. Whoever comes by the drawing of God through the invoking of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ will not cast out.
Matthew 28:19; John 3:16, 4:14, 6:37, 10:27; Acts 1:8; Colossians 1:23; Revelation 22:17
We believe that by complete and perfect obedience to God and by His suffering and His death, Jesus Christ obtained forgiveness of sins and the gift of His righteousness for all who trusted in God prior to the cross and all who trusted in Christ thereafter. Through living a perfect life and dying in our place, the just for the unjust, Christ absorbed and became sin and succumbed to our due punishment thereby satisfying the wrath of God against us.
Romans 3:23-26, 5:6, 5:9, 5:18–19, 8:1, 8:34, 14:9; 1 Corinthians 15:3; 2 Corinthians 5:14, 5:21; Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 1:7, 2:3–6; Philippians 3:9; Colossians 1:14; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18
THE CHURCH: A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper), governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. Its scriptural officers are pastors/elders and deacons. The New Testament speaks also of the church as the Body of Christ, which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages, believers from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation.
Matthew 16:15–19; Acts 2:41–42, 2:47, 5:11–14, 6:3-6, 14:23, 14:27, 15:1–30, 16:5, 20:17–32; 1 Corinthians 3:16, 7:17, 9:13–14, 12:1–31; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 3:1–15, 4:14; Titus 1:5–9; 1 Peter 5;1–4; Revelation 2–3, 21:2–3
EVANGELISM AND MISSIONS: It is the call and holy privilege of every Christian and of all churches of Jesus Christ to go and make disciples among the nations (Matthew 9:37–38). God creates transformed lives evidenced by purity, holiness, and growth in Christlike character by means of new birth. The Holy Spirit imputes the love of Christ into the hearts of believers, thus transforming their love toward others, for His name’s sake. This results in children of God who actively seek to take the gospel to sinners and who share in carrying out the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20; Romans 10:13-15; 2 Timothy 4:5). The highest purpose for evangelism and missions is that the name of Jesus Christ and the glory of His kingdom be taken to the ends of the earth until He returns.
Matthew 24:14; Romans 1:5; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 22:17
LAST THINGS: We believe in the personal and visible return of the Lord Jesus Christ to earth and the establishment of His kingdom. We believe in the resurrection of the body, the final judgment, the eternal felicity of the righteous, and the eternal punishment of the unredeemed (Matthew 16:27; Mark 14:62; John 14:3; Acts 1:11; 1 Corinthians 15:2; Philippians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 4:15; 2 Timothy 4:1; Titus 2:13; Revelation 20:4–6, 20:11–15). We believe that heaven is a real place of eternal blessedness prepared by God for those who have been saved by grace through the shed blood of Christ. We believe that hell is a real place of eternal suffering for those whose names are not written in the Book of Life. There is no intermediate state in which the unsaved can atone for his own sins (Luke 16:19–31; John 14:1–6; 2 Corinthians 5:1–10; Revelation 7:13–17, 20:11–15, 21:22–27).
Affirmations & Affiliations